Look for the thickest, nastiest, most briar laden spot on the property, and that's the bedding area. Fairly new cutovers are prime spots, and the closer the area is to a food and/or water sources the better it will be.

You should be able to see oval shapes where the grass and such are smashed down where the deer have been laying. Deer will generally defecate when they get up after snoozing for awhile, so there should be a high concentration of deer poop in these areas as well.

"When a hunter is in a tree stand with high moral values and with the proper hunting ethics and richer for the experience, that hunter is 20 feet closer to God." ~Fred Bear

Deebz wrote:You should be able to see oval shapes where the grass and such are smashed down where the deer have been laying. Deer will generally defecate when they get up after snoozing for awhile, so there should be a high concentration of deer poop in these areas as well.

Good point.

"Go as far as you can see; when you get there, you'll be able to see farther."

FlDeerman64 wrote:We still have high grass and broom sage in our fields that on a sunny day the deer love to bed in.If it's windy they like the thick edges.

U see that much in the daylight?I have a field I cut through to get to my woods, maybe thing high grass and TALL sage here and there and plenty of dog fennell, but never kicked up a deer. Turkey, no deer......not in daylight anyways. Possibly its the property as well, lots of cattle.

"Go as far as you can see; when you get there, you'll be able to see farther."

In the summer i have found deer laying in the water in the swamp grass. During season I watched deer come in by my stand and bed down in the tall grass.As for jumping deer in the grass no and you might not. I watched two hunters walk by a doe less than 10 feet from her. the doe just watched them go by. All She did was stay down.

I have also see deer bedding 70 yards from 15 air boats partying. Not until a boat ran too close did they run. My thought when deer are hiding they stay hidden when the up and grassing they bolt when you come by. You almost need to kick them out of there bed.

I've killed bucks in their beds after the dogs jumped does that were bedding right next to them. I used to think they wouldn't bed down in standing water; but the last few years I've found that's not true.

rthomas4 wrote:I've killed bucks in their beds after the dogs jumped does that were bedding right next to them. I used to think they wouldn't bed down in standing water; but the last few years I've found that's not true.